Time and convenience are in short supply for homemakers wishing to supply a home-cooked meal to family members. Some appliances, such as slow-cooker appliances, attempt to meet this need by providing all-day cooking while a homemaker is absent. Such appliances, however, tend to be of the type where only one temperature and all day cooking is possible, regardless of the food item, and thus potentially subjecting the food item to over- or under-cooking. Another option may be to use a cooking unit with a controller, where a user may set a time or temperature desired. These units, however, tend to be quite a bit larger and more expensive than slow-cooker appliances. If these units are of more reasonable size, they also suffer because the controller inevitably must be placed near the heating element.
What is needed is a cooking appliance in which the user retains control over the time and temperature of cooking, but which is small enough to be convenient. What is needed is a slow-cooker unit in which the controller does not become overheated and damaged by the heating element.